Posted on 09/30/2007 8:49:42 AM PDT by fkabuckeyesrule
First, they shattered Babe Ruth's season long-ball record, making 60 home runs sound like a distinctly ordinary number, one that was almost shrugged off in modern baseball's environment of souped-up sluggers. Then, they turned the Babe's career record of 714 home runs into an afterthought, barely mentioned as first Henry Aaron and now Barry Bonds shot past it and kept right on going.
That left Ruth with one distinction, one moment no one has been able to match, a singular statement that nobody but the boisterous Babe would ever have the audacity to even attempt, especially in the pressure cooker that is the World Series.
It was the Called Shot home run.
For 75 years the debate has raged. Did Ruth really have the nerve to point at the center-field bleachers at Wrigley Field, in Game 3 of the 1932 World Series, boldly predicting that he would hit the next pitch to that spot?
That depends on whose recollection you believe.
Charlie Root, who threw the pitch, said there was no way Ruth called his shot.
''If he had made a gesture like that, I'd have put one in his ear and knocked him on his [backside],'' Root said.
(Excerpt) Read more at suntimes.com ...
''What do you think of the nerve of that big monkey, calling his shot and getting away with it?'' Gehrig said.
I was just reading Jonathon Eig's The Luckiest Man and Gehrig hit a towering HR after Ruth's called shot but of course as was usually the case with Gehrig he was overshadowed by Ruth.
There’s no debate. I saw Bill Bendix recreate the event in the film.
Whenever I hear two eyewitness accounts of the same car accident, I always have my doubts about history.
I love John Candy, but didn’t The Babe wear #3? And as to the writer denigrating Babe’s 60 homeruns, well, keep in mind that when the Bambino accomplished that feat, the National League home run leaders (their was a tie) hit a grand total of 30 each.
After decades had passed, an Illinois man found his late father’s old home movies in an attic and, amazingly, one contained scenes of the famous ‘32 series game where Ruth “called his shot” and showed the actual event itself.
The Cubs in the third base dugout were razzing the left-handed hitting Ruth and he made several pointed gestures in that direction, across the field towards the Cubs dugout.
There is no dramatic pointing to center field as the Bendix movie portrays. Only gestures out across the field.
I believe the “called shot” is a bit of embellishment that could not be proven or disproven in its time and Ruth, wisely, let the legend grow rather than attempt to set the record straight.
Oh, yeah. Big man.
Commie deconstructivism.
Re-writing all history so there can be no heroes, except of course those approved by Stalin. And subject to airbrushing out of the picture as needed.
There’s another name that they called Ruth. But if I typed it the moderater would come after me. LOL!
Thanks! That was a HOOT!
Pretty disillusioning...if you can't trust the movies, what can you trust?
In Leigh Montville’s biography of the , was at a high-society dinner party in the following off-season. A woman, a member of British royalty, asked the about the called shot.
Babe recounted the story:
“Those f**kin bums on the Chicago bench were saying to me ‘you f**k*n bum” and riding me, and I told them ‘I’m going to hit the f**kin ball over the wall right there’, and ... (so on)”.
The aristocrat blushed and left the table. Ruth’s host pulled him aside and said “Why did you talk to her like that?”
Babe replied “Well, da*mit, she asked me to tell her what happened!”
BTW, Montville reports that Ruth and Gehrig were on non-speaking terms for years, finally ending when Ruth came to Yankee stadium for the day honoring Gehrig.
The reason — Ruth always had big wild ‘adult’ parties on his private rail car when the team traveled. Ruth’s car was always filled with wild attractive women. Gehrig met his future wife at one of those parties (his mother disapproved). Later, after Gehrig had married her, the team was traveling and Gehrig found his wife in Ruth’s car, conversing with Ruth.
Gehrig never spoke to Ruth again, until his Yankee stadium day.
“Pretty disillusioning...if you can’t trust the movies, what can you trust?”
Sad, I know what you mean. Thank god we have the internet, it will never lie to me.
And Mel Allen made the call.
“RIGHT WHERE HE POINTED!!!!!”
I read that book too. Didn't relly care for his writing though. But it's always interesting to read a book about someone like Ruth.
I heard an old boy who had been at that game say much the same thing. Ruth made some kind of gesture but it wasn't clear what he was doing.
This old guy had been a salesman in the 20s and 30s. Since most ballgames were day games he'd treat his clients to baseball. He went to hundreds and hundreds of games. It was a treat listening to him, for him it was natural to have seen Ruth, Cobb, Gehrig, Dizzy Dean.
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